Orthokeratology with increased compression factor in adolescent myopia control:a 2-year prospective randomized clinical trial

AIM:To explore the long-term efficacy,safety,and optical mechanism of orthokeratology with increased compression factor in adolescent myopia control.METHODS:A prospective,double-masked,and randomized clinical trial was performed from May 2016 to June 2020.Subjects aged between 8 and 16y,with myopia(-5.00 to-1.00 D),low astigmatism(≥-1.50 D)and anisometropia(≤1.00 D),were stratified into low(-2.75 to-1.00 D)and moderate(-5.00 to-3.00 D)myopia groups.Then they were randomly assigned to wear either increased compression factor(ICF;1.75 D)orthokeratology or conventional compression factor(CCF;0.75 D)orthokeratology.The data were recorded including axial length(AL),spherical equivalent(SE),best corrected visual acuity(BCVA),near visual acuity(NVA),corneal staining(using Efron grading scales),corneal hysteresis(CH),corneal resistance factor(CRF),higher-order aberrations(HOAs,expressed as root mean square,RMS_(h)),and subfoveal choroidal thickness(SFCh T)in the 2-year followup period.Pearson's correlation coefficient was conducted to analyze the association between the changes in AL and RMS_(h),SFCh T.RESULTS:At the 2-year visit,there were no statistical differences in all the parameters between the ICF group and the CCF group in low myopia subjects(P>0.05).For the moderate myopia subjects,the ICF group had shorter AL elongation(0.23±0.08 vs 0.30±0.11 mm,P=0.015),higher RMS_(h)(1.94±0.50 vs 1.65±0.51μm,P=0.041),and higher SFCh T(279.04±35.72 vs 254.08±29.60μm,P=0.008)than those in CCF group.The change in AL was negatively correlated with RMS_(h)(r=-0.687,P<0.001)and SFCh T(r=-0.464,P=0.013).CONCLUSION:ICF orthokeratology can control the progression of moderate myopia more effectively,which might be related to greater RMS_(h) and SFCh T.

Identification of time-varying system and energy-based optimization of adaptive control in seismically excited structure

The combination of structural health monitoring and vibration control is of great importance to provide components of smart structures.While synthetic algorithms have been proposed,adaptive control that is compatible with changing conditions still needs to be used,and time-varying systems are required to be simultaneously estimated with the application of adaptive control.In this research,the identification of structural time-varying dynamic characteristics and optimized simple adaptive control are integrated.First,reduced variations of physical parameters are estimated online using the multiple forgetting factor recursive least squares(MFRLS)method.Then,the energy from the structural vibration is simultaneously specified to optimize the control force with the identified parameters to be operational.Optimization is also performed based on the probability density function of the energy under the seismic excitation at any time.Finally,the optimal control force is obtained by the simple adaptive control(SAC)algorithm and energy coefficient.A numerical example and benchmark structure are employed to investigate the efficiency of the proposed approach.The simulation results revealed the effectiveness of the integrated online identification and optimal adaptive control in systems.

Electron G-Factor Anomaly and the Charge Thickness

The electron g-factor relates the magnetic moment to the spin angular momentum. It was originally theoretically calculated to have a value of exactly 2. Experiments yielded a value of 2 plus a very small fraction, referred to as the g-factor anomaly. This anomaly has been calculated theoretically as a power series of the fine structure constant. This document shows that the anomaly is the result of the electron charge thickness. If the thickness were to be zero, g = 2 exactly, and there would be no anomaly. As the thickness increases, the anomaly increases. An equation relating the g-factor and the surface charge thickness is presented. The thickness is calculated to be 0.23% of the electron radius. The cause of the anomaly is very clear, but why is the charge thickness greater than zero? Using the model of the interior structure of the electron previously proposed by the author, it is shown that the non-zero thickness, and thus the g-factor anomaly, are due to the proposed positive charge at the electron center and compressibility of the electron material. The author’s previous publication proposes a theory for splitting the electron into three equal charges when subjected to a strong external magnetic field. That theory is revised in this document, and the result is an error reduced to 0.4% in the polar angle where the splits occur and a reduced magnetic field required to cause the splits.

A novel correlation approach for prediction of natural gas compressibility factor

Gas compressibility factor （z-Factor） is one of the most important parameters in upstream and downstream calculations of petroleum industries.The importance of z-Factor cannot be overemphasized in oil and gas engineering calculations.The experimental measurements,Equations of State （EoS） and empirical correlations are the most common sources of z-Factor calculations.There are more than twenty correlations available with two variables for calculating the z-Factor from fitting in an EoS or just through fitting techniques.However,these correlations are too complex,which require initial value and more complicated and longer computations or have magnitude error.The purpose of this study is to develop a new accurate correlation to rapidly estimate z-Factor.Result of this correlation is compared with large scale of database and experimental data also.Proposed correlation has 1.660 of Absolute Percent Relative Error （EABS） versus Standing and Katz chart and has also 3.221 of EABS versus experimental data.The output of this correlation can be directly assumed or be used as an initial value of other implicit correlations.This correlation is valid for gas coefficient of isothermal compressibility （cg） calculations also.

Rapidly Estimating Natural Gas Compressibility Factor

Natural gases containing sour components exhibit different gas compressibility factor （Z） behavior than do sweet gases. Therefore, a new accurate method should be developed to account for these differences. Several methods are available today for calculating the Z-factor from an equation of state. However, these equations are more complex than the foregoing correlations, involving a large number of parameters, which require more complicated and longer computations. The aim of this study is to develop a simplified calculation method for a rapid estimating Z-factor for sour natural gases containing as much as 90% total acid gas. In this article, two new correlations are first presented for calculating the pseudo- critical pressure and temperature of the gas mixture as a function of the gas specific gravity. Then, a simple correlation on the basis of the standard gas compressibility factor chart is introduced for a quick estimation of sweet gases＇ compressibility factor as a function of reduced pressure and temperature. Finally, a new corrective term related to the mole fractions of carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide is developed.

An efficient correlation for calculating compressibility factor of natural gases

Compressibility factor （z-factor） values of natural gases are necessary in most petroleum engineering calculations.Necessity arises when there are few available experimental data for the required composition,pressure and temperature conditions.One of the most common methods of calculating z-factor values is empirical correlation.Firstly,a new correlation based on the famous Standing-Katz （S-K） Chart is presented to predict z-factor values.The advantage of this correlation is that it is explicit in z and thus does not require an iterative solution as is required by other methods.Secondly,the comparison between new one and other correlations is carried out and the results indicate the superiority of the new correlation over the other correlations used to calculate z-factor.

Experimental determination and prediction of the compressibility factor of high CO_2 content natural gas with and without water vapor

In order to study the effect of different CO2 contents on gas compressibility factor（Z-factor）,the JEFRI-PVT apparatus has been used to measure the Z-factor of dry natural gas with CO2 content range from 10.74 to 70.42 mol%at the temperature range from 301.2 to 407.3 K and pressure range from 7 to 44 MPa.The results show that Z-factor decreases with increasing CO2 content in natural gas at constant temperature and increases with increasing temperature for natural gas with the same CO2 content.In addition,the Z-factor of water-saturated natural gas with high CO2 content has been measured.A comparison of the Z-factor between natural gas with and without saturated water vapor indicates that the former shows a higher Z-factor than the latter.Furthermore,Peng-Robinson,Hall-Yarborough,and Soave-Benedict-Webb- Rubin equations of state（EoS）are used for the calculation of Z-factor of high CO2 content natural gas with and without water vapor.The optimal binary interaction parameters（BIP）for PR EoS are presented.The measured Z-factor is compared with the calculated Z-factor based on three models,which shows that PR EoS combined with van der Waals mixing rule for gas without water and Huron-Vidal mixing rule for water-saturated gas,are in good agreement with the experimental data.

Strategies for the diagnosis and treatment of the iliac vein compression syndrome

Aim:To evaluate the diagnosis and treatment strategies for the iliac vein compression syndrome(IVCS) and the factors that affect the treatment outcome.Methods:In total,69 patients with IVCS were enrolled in the study.The patients underwent computed tomography(CT) venography before treatment.CT observations included assessment of the iliac venous channel sagittal diameter(IVCD) before the lower lumbar vertebra,causes of oppression,thrombus density,and embolization range.The patients with IVCS were divided into the simple IVCS(s IVCS,n=22),lumbar degeneration-related type IVCS(d IVCS,n=33),and IVCS of other causes(o IVCS,n=14) including lumbar fracture,hematoma of infection,and abscess wraping around and compressing the iliac vein,groups.The treatment methods included target venous catheter-directed thrombolysis(CDT),a mechanical breaking and sucking treatment for the thrombi,followed by balloon dilatation and iliac vein stent implantation.The factors that may possibly affect the treatment outcomes included IVCS type,duration of disease,thrombus hardness,embolization length,and treatment regimen.Logistic regression was used to analyze the factors that affected the therapeutic efficacy.Results:At the first stage,CDT was only effective in 15 cases(5 d IVCSs and 10 o IVCSs) and was ineffective in the remaining 54 cases,which required further mechanical breaking and sucking of the thrombi and intravenous balloon dilatation.In the second stage,combination of thrombi breaking and suction and balloon dilatation was preliminarily effective in 26 cases(6 s IVCSs,16 d IVCSs and 4 o IVCSs),but during follow-up from 1 to 6 months,treatment was considered futile for 9 recurrent cases(3 s IVCSs and 6 d IVCSs).So,28 cases of preliminary ineffective treatment and 9 relapse in the second stage were arranged to the third stage of treatment by iliac vein stent implantation.All 37 cases were treated effectively and achieved a satisfactory iliac vein patency,and were followed-up for 24 months without recurrence.Logistic regression analysis showed that IVCS type(β=4.14;Wald test,P < 0.01),duration of illness(β=-5.33;Wald test,P=0.02),thrombus density(β=-6.46;Wald test,P=0.01),embolization length(β=2.74;Wald test,P=0.03),and treatment regimens(β=11.92;Wald test,P=0.01) all had a significant effect on the treatment outcomes.Conclusion:The selection of a suitable intervention treatment regimen for different types of IVCS may aid in improving the curative effect.

An accurate empirical correlation for predicting natural gas compressibility factors

The compressibility factor of natural gas is an important parameter in many gas and petroleum engineering calculations. This study presents a new empirical model for quick calculation of natural gas compressibility factors. The model was derived from 5844 experimental data of compressibility factors for a range of pseudo reduced pressures from 0.01 to 15 and pseudo reduced temperatures from 1 to 3. The accuracy of the new empirical correlation has been compared with commonly used existing methods. The comparison indicates the superiority of the new empirical model over the other methods used to calculate compressibility factor of natural gas with average absolute relative deviation percent （AARD%） of 0.6535.

A New Encryption-Then-Compression Scheme on Gray Images Using the Markov Random Field

Compressing encrypted images remains a challenge.As illustrated in our previous work on compression of encrypted binary images,it is preferable to exploit statistical characteristics at the receiver.Through this line,we characterize statistical correlations between adjacent bitplanes of a gray image with the Markov random field(MRF),represent it with a factor graph,and integrate the constructed MRF factor graph in that for binary image reconstruction,which gives rise to a joint factor graph for gray images reconstruction(JFGIR).By exploiting the JFGIR at the receiver to facilitate the reconstruction of the original bitplanes and deriving theoretically the sum-product algorithm(SPA)adapted to the JFGIR,a novel MRF-based encryption-then-compression(ETC)scheme is thus proposed.After preferable universal parameters of the MRF between adjacent bitplanes are sought via a numerical manner,extensive experimental simulations are then carried out to show that the proposed scheme successfully compresses the first 3 and 4 most significant bitplanes(MSBs)for most test gray images and the others with a large portion of smooth area,respectively.Thus,the proposed scheme achieves significant improvement against the state-of-the-art leveraging the 2-D Markov source model at the receiver and is comparable or somewhat inferior to that using the resolution-progressive strategy in recovery.

Study on influence factors of cement-stabilized soil compressive strength

The cement dry jet mixing method has been used to reinforce soft cohesive ground to increase the strength of soft cohesive ground and to decrease its deformation. The study briefly introduces the curing mechanism of cement-soil,presents the factors of influencing on compressive strength,mainly analyses the factors including cement mixing ratio,cement strength grade,curing age,moisture content and soil texture and puts forward some rational proposals at last.

Closing law and stress intensity factor of elliptical crack under compressive loading

The solution of surface displacement of an elliptical crack under compressive-shear loading was obtained by using the complex function method. The closing mode was established by analyzing the geometrical condition of closing crack, and the corresponding critical stress was solved. The result corrects the traditional viewpoint, in which there exist only open or close states for an elliptical crack, and points out that the local closing is also one of crack states. Based on them, the effect of the closed crack on stress intensity factor was discussed in detail, and its rational formulae are put forward.

Application of caustic method to determining stress intensity factor of compressive shear crack

The caustic method is applied to compressive shear experiment and used to detect the stress intensity factors of cracks prefabricated on plexiglass sample. Loading, friction of crack planes and influence among cracks are not needed to know as they are combined and transformed into the caustic shadow used in detecting the stress intensity factor. Even boundary condition is not necessary. Therefore it is effective to determine the stress intensity factor of compressive shear crack.

The ferroptosis activity is associated with neurological recovery following chronic compressive spinal cord injury

Chronic compressive spinal cord injury in compressive cervical myelopathy conditions can lead to rapid neurological deterioration in the early phase,followed by partial self-recovery,and ultimately an equilibrium state of neurological dysfunction.Ferroptosis is a crucial pathological process in many neurodegenerative diseases;however,its role in chro nic compressive spinal cord injury remains unclear.In this study,we established a chronic compressive spinal cord injury rat model,which displayed its most severe behavioral and electrophysiological dysfunction at 4 wee ks and partial recovery at 8 weeks after compression.Bulk RNA sequencing data identified enriched functional pathways,including ferroptosis,presynapse,and postsynaptic membrane activity at both 4 and 8 wee ks following chro nic compressive spinal co rd injury.Tra nsmission electron microscopy and malondialdehyde quantification assay confirmed that ferroptosis activity peaked at 4 weeks and was attenuated at 8 weeks after chronic compression.Ferro ptosis activity was negatively correlated with behavioral score.Immunofluorescence,quantitative polymerase chain reaction,and western blotting showed that expression of the anti-ferroptosis molecules,glutathione peroxidase 4(GPX4) and MAF BZIP transcription factor G(MafG),in neuro ns was suppressed at 4 weeks and upregulated at 8 weeks following spinal co rd compression.There was a positive correlation between the expression of these two molecules,suggesting that they may work together to contribute to functional recovery following chronic compressive spinal cord injury.In conclusion,our study determined the genome-wide expression profile and fe rroptosis activity of a consistently compressed spinal cord at different time points.The results showed that anti-fe rroptosis genes,specifically GPX4 and MafG,may be involved in spontaneous neurological recovery at 8 weeks of chronic compressive spinal cord injury.These findings contribute to a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying chronic compressive spinal cord injury and may help identify new therapeutic targets for compressive cervical myelopathy.

Flow stress and tribology size effects in scaled down cylinder compression

Microforming is an effective method to manufacture small metal parts.However,macro forming can not be transferred to microforming directly because of size effects.Flow stress and tribology size effects were studied.Scaled down copper T2 cylinder compression was carried out with the lubrication of castor oil and without lubrication.The results show that the flow stress decreases with decreasing the initial specimen diameter in both lubrication conditions,and the flow stress decreases by 30 MPa with the initial specimen diameter decreasing from 8 mm to 1 mm.The friction factor increases obviously with decreasing the initial specimen diameter in the case of lubricating with castor oil,and the friction factor increases by 0.11 with the initial specimen diameter decreasing from 8 mm to 1 mm.However,the tribology size effect is not found in the case without lubrication.The reasons of the flow stress and tribology size effects were also discussed.

Semi-analytical weight function method for center-cracked circular disk subjected to diametral compression

Büeckner Rice weight function method was used to analyse mixed mode fracture of center cracked circular disk subjected to uniaxial compression. Based on Wu Carlsson procedure semi analytical modes Ⅰ and Ⅱ weight functions were derived from corresponding reference displacement fields and stress intensity factors calculated by finite element method. Normalized mode Ⅰ and mode Ⅱ stress intensity factors, f Ⅰ, f Ⅱ , were derived from the obtained semi analytical weight functions. The results were then fitted into polynomials, the precision is within 0.5%. It is interesting to note that when the inclined angle θ of a crack is less than 15°, the f Ⅰvalues are positive. when θ =15°, the f Ⅰ values are positive for the crack length a varying from 0.1 to 0.7, but when a =0.8, the f Ⅰ takes the negative value -0.51. When θ >15°, all the f Ⅰ values become negative, which denotes that the compression shear mode is achieved at crack tips. These results are very useful in the investigation of mixed mode fracture of brittle materials.

Single-versus multi-fraction radiation treatment for metastatic spinal cord compression:functional outcome study

Objective:The optimal treatment of patients with metastatic spinal cord compression(MSCC) is still being debated.This randomized trial was planned to compare the functional outcome and its related prognostic factors,toxicity and in-field recurrence of the three schedules of radiotherapy.Methods:Two hundred and eighty five patients enrolled in the study of which 95 received 1 × 8 Gy,100 received 10 x 3 Gy and 90 received the radiation treatment of 20 × 2 Gy.Irradiation was performed with 6-10 Mv linear accelerators or cobalt-60 units by single posterior field or parallel opposed fields according to depth of irradiation spines.Premedication with dexamethasone was started from the first day of clinico-radiologic diagnosis till 4-5 days after the end of radiotherapy(RT) then tapered off during 10 days.Potential prognostic factors were evaluated with respect to functional outcome.Results:All groups were balanced for patient's characteristics and potential prognostic factors.No statistically significant difference was observed between the 3 groups as regard functional outcome and toxicity while single fraction was associated with higher in-field recurrences(22.8%) with statistically significant difference between the 3 groups(P = 0.01).Functional outcome was significantly better with younger age(≤ 60 y),Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status(ECOG-PS) of 1-2,involved vertebra of 1-2,favorable tumor type,absence of visceral or other bone metastasis,decreased time of developing motor deficit before radiotherapy,long interval between cancer diagnosis to metastatic spinal cord compression,and normal ambulatory status.Conclusion:The three schedules provided similar functional outcome.Single-radiation dose was associated with higher in-field recurrence.To minimize treatment time and costs,the dose of 1 × 8 Gy is recommended for patients with poor predicated survival and 10 × 3 Gy for other patients.

Research on assessing compression quality taking into account the space-borne remote sensing images

According to the remote sensing image characteristics, a set oi optimized compression quahty assessment methods is proposed on the basis of generating simulative images. Firstly, a means is put forward that generates simulative images by scanning aerial films taking into account the space-borne remote sensing camera characteristics （including pixel resolution, histogram dynamic range and quantization）. In the course of compression quality assessment, the objective assessment considers images texture changes and mutual relationship between simulative images and decompressed ima- ges, while the synthesized estimation factor （SEF） is brought out innovatively for the first time. Subjective assessment adopts a display setup -- 0.5mrn/pixel, which considers human visual char- acteristic and mainstream monitor. The set of methods are applied in compression plan design of panchromatic camera loaded on ZY-1-02C satellite. Through systematic and comprehensive assess- ment, simulation results show that image compression quality with the compression ratio of d：l can meet the remote sensing application requirements.

Theoretical Analysis and Experimental Verification of Crack Initiation Characteristics of Compression-Shear Plane Crack with Hydraulic Pressure

In this paper, the crack initiation characteristics of compression-shear plane crack with hydraulic pressure were studied by using theoretical analysis and experimental verification methods. The formula derivation process of stress intensity factor of crack tip and open-type crack initiation angle and initiation strength was expounded in detail. Cement mortar specimens prefabricated with open-type crack were made for biaxial compression test. The results show that the mode I stress intensity factor is inversely proportional to the dip angle of pre-exciting crack, water pressure and crack width. The fracture toughness is most easily achieved when the dip angle of pre-exciting crack is 60°. The mode II stress intensity factor is symmetrically distributed with the dip angle and independent of the water pressure and crack width. For open-type crack, the crack initiation angle decreases with the increase of the dip angle of pre-exciting crack, water pressure and crack width;the crack initiation strength is inversely proportional to the water pressure and proportional to the lateral pressure. The research results can provide ideas for the study of crack initiation under the coupling of ground stress and osmotic pressure in tunnel engineering.

Revisiting factors contributing to the strength of cemented backfill support system:A review

This paper provides a review of the intrinsic and extrinsic factors affecting the uniaxial compressive strength(UCS)of cemented tailings backfill(CTB).The consideration is that once CTB is poured into underground stopes,its strength is heavily influenced by factors internal to the CTB as well as the surrounding mining environments.Peer-reviewed journal articles,books,and conference papers published between 2000 and 2022 were searched electronically from various databases and reviewed.Additional sources,such as doctoral theses,were obtained from academic repositories.An important finding from the review is that the addition of fibers was reported to improve the UCS of CTB in some studies while decrease in others.This discrepancy was accounted to the different properties of fibers used.Further research is therefore needed to determine the“preferred”fiber to be used in CTB.Diverging findings were also reported on the effects of stope size on the UCS of CTB.Furthermore,the use of fly ash as an alternative binder may be threatened in the future when reliance on the coal power declines.Therefore,an alternative cementitious by-product to be used together with furnace slag may be required in the future.Finally,while most studies on backfill focused on single-layered structures,layered backfill design models should also be investigated.